Mass Effect 3 Endings
by behzad1665
Summary: "Long long journey through the darkness" An astute figure murmured these words as she was watching the history unfold before her lifeless holographic eyes. Left behind to guide the hand of fate, Aurora knew that moment; Destiny was in the making. She smiled.


**My "Mass Effect 3" Endings**

By: Behzad "Dono" M.M.

Note: What follows is my first attempt at fan fiction. Except the final part, all was done almost immediately after I had finished playing Mass Effect 3. Also note that this was written **before** the Extended Cut DLC was released and I personally think this cut sufficiently addressed the issues of the original endings. Enjoy!

**SPOILER ALERT!**

Of course there can be lots of other possibilities and I'm by no means an accomplished writer or storyteller. Also bear in mind that English is not my native language and there will certainly be some mistakes here and there that I hope you'll forgive.

Consider this a humble fan fiction of someone who has loved the entire trilogy up to very last battle scene when Commander Shepard and company rush to the column of light that leads to the citadel. The endings, in my opinion, could go like this:

**Prelude to the end**

"Commander Shepard" and friends make way to the "Citadel" command center to open its wards (wings) so that the docking with the "Crucible" can be completed. Half way through, they encounter "The Illusive Man" and some of his goons. Now resembling more to a "Husk" than a human being, he finally reveals to us to be an experimental, one of a kind infiltration "Reaper". Due the galaxy's current civilization's experience in space combat and warfare (largely thanks to the "Rachni wars" and the "Krogan rebellion"), the Reapers feared they might have to fight a more prepared and well-armed enemy than the previous cycles. Thus, they decided to manufacture an experimental Reaper to infiltrate the "Milky Way" galaxy not only to observe the situation and report back, but also to plant the seeds of mistrust and animosity within the various races of the galaxy. A "paragon" Shepard will be disgusted and shocked by this revelation while a "renegade" hero's anger will explode by the thought that he/she was being used by the Reaper's spy all this time! Both decides to eliminate the illusive man and after a grueling battle with this multi-staged, transforming foe and his henchmen, finally put a pistol between his cyber eyes and pull the trigger!

Now free of this last burden, Shepard and friends finally reach the control center and activate the main console. There they encounter yet another "Virtual Intelligence" of "Prothean" design, fashioned after the last living Prothean empress. Her name is "Aurora".

The VI, or Empress Aurora, explains to our heroes that the Reapers come from the "Andromeda", a similar "Spiral galaxy" near the Milky Way and that their cycle of destruction is in fact much older than that they think and has been repeated for millions of years. This is actually the 741st cycle. Also, she finally reveals the true function of the Citadel-Crucible structure; by utilizing the technology of the "Mass Relays", which were originally made by the Reapers to facilitate their periodic galactic extermination, the Protheans were able to complete the project of this device, legacy of a lost, technologically-advanced race from the cycle before them. This impossibly enormous device is actually a gigantic mass relay! And while normal mass relays, even the most powerful ones, are only capable of propelling a starship to a twin, paired mass relay from one side of the galaxy to the other, this colossal contraption can break these pre-established rules and limitations; it can propel its users, almost instantly, to any point in space or in any galaxy in the known cosmos, without the need of a similar paired mass relay.

It's neither a weapon, nor a control device, the crucible is the Protheans' escape plan, though they never had the chance to actually build and use it. There's little time to meditate on what this new found knowledge and its implications mean. The fight between the Reaper forces and the combined galactic war machine is heating up. Almost all the invading Reapers are converging on this spot to crush all the resistance once and for all, and so The Earth has become the battle ground for the final confrontation. Everything has come to this. This is the defining moment for the legendary Captain Shepard and his/her crew. History is being made and it will reflect what you have been preparing it for:

**1st Ending**

**Insufficient** "Effective Military Strength (EMS)", **Renegade** Commander Shepard

We are losing! It is not enough. They just keep coming! The starships of various races, even the dreadnoughts are utterly useless and inadequate against the sheer number of the Reapers. They fall and burn, illuminating the dark space with an orange, fiery glow, all the while the merciless nemesis draws ever closer to its target, the Crucible. There is no time left, a decision has to be made and somehow it seems everyone expect Shepard to make that call. And so he does!

Although many are inclined to retreat, the commander gives a different order; "defend the crucible with everything you've got!"

Shepard explains to his crew that the only salvation is to actuate the Protheans' original plan. After all, this is what they've all worked for these past months. Many lives were sacrificed to accomplish this; a few more won't change anything, no?

Thus, Shepard completes the docking possess of the two gigantic space objects, the Citadel opens up like a star and the massive energy stored inside the Crucible begins to circulate through both machines. The titanic mass relay is ready; one must only choose the destination. At this point, it really doesn't matter where. Any galaxy would do fine, as long as it is far away from here. EDI helps Shepard choose a remote location, an old stable galaxy with a high chance of containing habitable planets. The new home for sapient life will be "NG 1300", a barred spiral galaxy in the constellation "Eridanus", over 60 million light-years away! Everything is set; the commander is ready to initiate the voyage aboard the "Normandy SR-2". But the Reapers are not going to watch their pray escape so easily, not when they are so close to achieving their goal. They groan and twist, giving their destructive instincts total freedom. Red hot liquid radioactive metals, fire in forms resembling that of laser beams, tearing apart cruisers and dreadnoughts in an instant. There won't be enough time to evacuate every one, that much is painfully obvious now.

But the Commander is not going to give up, no sir! He WILL make the journey; no matter the cost, he WILL make this plan work. This also is quite obvious to his crew; Shepard will go forward, no looking backs, no regrets, he WILL survive, as he always has. But not everyone has this kind of cold, calculated courage. Some have family, others have friends and most have memories in this world they cannot simply ignore, or forget.

And so the legendary company of space heroes go their separate ways; Admiral Tali Vas Normandy, returns to the admiralty to fight alongside her Quarian brethren to buy a small chance for their passenger ships to escape via the massive mass relay. Wrex and Grunt choose to stand their ground to the last. Death on the battlefield; there's no higher honor for a Krogan. An angry James Vega storms to an escape pod to get back to earth, he's not going to leave his home, never again.

In the end, some choose to remain and some opt to brave the darkness of the new world, and the cold clutch of guilt. The Normandy is the first ship to enter the weightless corridor. It's unlike anything they have ever experienced; consciousness fragmented, bodies twisted, time seized to exist. But all that only lasts for a moment; they are already here.

NG 1300 welcomes the new visitors with its twisting long arms, majestic and beautiful beyond imagining, yet unfamiliar and threatening at the same time. Soon after Normandy, a steady stream of ships and space vessels begin to populate the exit point of the mass relay's corridor. Within minutes there are more ships that the eye can count; most are damaged and scarred Quarian passenger ships, but there are a few vessels from almost every other species. Before long the last ship comes through the mystic portal, a Turian dreadnought, neatly cut, almost exactly in half. It wasn't able to fully enter the mass less corridor. This could only mean one thing; the Crucible is no more! Whether it was destroyed by the Reapers or the remaining resistance forces in a desperate attempt to seal off the monsters' only way of pursuing the fleeing ships, it doesn't matter now. It's over. We shall never see or hear from them again, or our homes.

This fleet is now an Ark, but there are no doves, no olive branches to greet the survivors and no Noah. There's only Shepard, darkness and his iron will to survive. A cold Chaos, an ocean of lifelessness is waiting, embracing the anomaly of life.

Into the unknown they venture, the last odyssey begins!

**2nd Ending**

**Insufficient** "Effective Military Strength (EMS)", **Paragon** Commander Shepard

Facing the endless onslaught of the Reapers and the ever more obvious outcome of this conflict, Commander Shepard is left with few options. Retreat means to abandon Earth, again, and to no avail too as the Reapers will slowly but surely hunt and kill every sapient being in the galaxy. It may even take them a few years to reach the remotest locations or the most isolated and well hidden colonies, but the previous cycles are clear testaments to this methodical, clean and flawless genocide. No one will escape and nothing can change this fact. Except this time, maybe there is a chance, the Crucible!

The decision is hard, but someone has to make it, to take responsibility for it, to act. So Shepard makes that choice and like the hero he has come to be known for, he follows his choice with absolute resolve and conviction. The Milky Way is done for. The plan must continue without delay.

A new destination is chosen. A ring type galaxy, known as "Hoag's Object", seems to be the perfect candidate for humanity and its struggling alien comrades. Nearly 600 million light-years away in the constellation "Serpens", the dark gap between its spectacular ring and its bright core is littered with star systems, ready to be explored and well hidden from prying eyes, or at least they hope it is.

While EDI finishes the final adjustments to the Crucible system, Shepard makes the call to inform everyone about this new plan; it's time to go. Although almost everyone resist and refuse the idea at first, deep down they know that this is their only option, their only chance of survival; the grim truth of the battlefield dictates it.

The countdown begins then, everyone is rushing towards the Crucible. The first ships have already departed, mostly civilian and hospital ships. These are few and far between, they've mostly come here as support or hospital ships, but every soldier worth his salt knows that they are the first priority to safeguard and escort to safety, no matter what unit or race they belong to. The bulk of every species' military force is still fighting the Reapers, buying precious time for the others, each second making the final sacrifice by the thousands.

The Reapers are not going to let us go so easily, that much is at least predictable. They stop attacking the Earth and the Crucible and rapidly disperse in every direction. They have a new objective; destroy as many ships as possible, priority; civilian and passenger ships!

They reap through the ships like a warm knife through butter, the resistance force is in disarray and confusion reigns supreme. No one was expecting this kind of military tactics from the Reapers; fast, hit and run attacks and not their usual overwhelming and relentless but nevertheless straightforward assaults! This way, not only they avoid the dreadnoughts' main canons, they can also slaughter the under-armed, under-armored, non military spec ships even faster.

The situation is becoming even more desperate; the Reapers are concentrating their attacks on the Quarian flotilla which holds the most number of passenger ships, full of engineers of every species who worked on the Crucible. If things continue this way, no one will be left to use the inter-galactic mass relay.

When all hope seems to be lost, a voice is heard through the radios of every ship. It's a familiar one and it belongs to the impossible man; survivor of countless conflicts, ambassador of peace, harbinger of justice, revealer of truths, destroyer of Reapers, denier of death and the one light of hope in this darkest hour.

Shepard is talking: "The time for indecision and doubt is over my friends. Everyone must choose now; either head through the Citadel-Crucible mass relay or fall into formation and attack the Reapers while prioritizing the safe transit of non-military and fleeing ships. There is no shame for those of you who choose to retreat as you are only postponing the hardships to when you must face the unknowns of the new world. You are our legacy, testament to our existence and keeper of our dreams. Go and Godspeed! As for everyone else, fall in line people! It's time to kick some giant squid's ass! Over and out"

Shepard stops talking. He lifts his head and looks at his crewmembers' faces, most of them gathered in the CIC deck. Not a word is spoken. They all know that those words where addressed to them as well and they must make a choice too. "Ready for combat, commander", Garrus proudly utters, as James chambers a round in his trusty rifle. No one leaves the Normandy, this is their home. There's only one thing left for Shepard to say as he's rushing toward the cockpit: "To battle stations!"

Suddenly there is a different feeling to this battle, a new flame has sparked! Admiral Hackett coordinates a defensive layer around the Crucible, while Turian and Asari ships make safe corridors for those who are heading towards it.

As the last of the fleeing ships disappears into the space-time tunnel, the military strength of the galaxy wanes even more. There are only a few ships left, some hundred cruisers and a handful of dreadnoughts. As for the Reapers, the space is littered with the devastated bodies of their kind, yet it looks like they are just as numerous as they were at the start of this battle. They are making the last push for the Crucible. If they reach it, they can easily pursuit and hunt down everyone who fled this nightmare, not to mention them acquiring an extremely powerful piece of hardware, one that will lend them almost an infinite amount of freedom for carnage and destruction.

Shepard raises the admiral; "it's time, sir"

"I know", Hackett replies as he nods to someone off screen.

While the cruisers and fighters are fighting a losing battle of attrition to buy some time, the few remaining dreadnought class battleships all turn and point their guns at the Crucible.

"It was an honor serving with you Shepard", Hackett says while saluting.

The dreadnoughts fire their monstrous main canons in tandem, blowing gigantic holes in the construct and reaping the imposing dual structure to shreds. The galaxy's political capital and its final endeavor to resist fate, both explode into the annals of history.

"The honor was all mine sir", replies a saluting Shepard.

He seems satisfied by this turn of events; all that could be done, is done. The Reapers seem to be in some sort of shock though. True, they still have almost all of the galaxy's population to decimate and consume, but for the first time in millions of years, someone has defied them. Even worse, a sizable quantity of Milky Way's sapient population and technology has evaded their grasp and are all but reachable. Their plan to destroy all sapient life forms has failed. For the first time in eons, they have lost!

The shock only lasts a moment. As they resume their attack, almost a tangible rage can be felt, unbecoming of a machine race of self proclaimed gods!

Commander Shepard is standing in the cockpit of his fabled ship, the Normandy, a subtle grin on his face. He pats joker on the shoulder: "Mr. Moreau, that big ugly thing that's coming right at us is kind of familiar, isn't it?"

"Yes sir, that's Harbinger for you sir. He never quits", Joker replies jokingly as usual.

"No, he never does."

"All systems green and ready commander", says EDI with her reassuring voice.

"Ok then", the commander utters as he opens the intercom channel and shouts like a naval admiral of times long since past: "Garrus, Liara, Tali, James, everyone! Get ready people, it's gonna get rough ".

Like the Viking captains of old, a battle cry accompanies Shepard as he is making his way to his commanding post in the CIC deck, softly murmuring these words: "Come get us you bastard! This time I'm gonna drag you down to hell with me for sure".

As the Normandy joins the resistance fleet, or what is left of them, it takes the role of the spearhead, ready to pierce the heart of darkness. Seconds before the ships reach the firing range of each other, Joker looks at EDI and says: "It's been a fun ride. Let's roll!

**3rd Ending**

**Sufficient** "Effective Military Strength (EMS)", **Renegade** Commander Shepard

"It's working! My God…it really _is_ working! We are beating the Reapers!"

These are the excited world of the easily excitable pilot of the Normandy, our very own Joker, as he is relaying the most recent battle assessment results EDI made to Commander Shepard.

"I know, I can see that"

As the commander replies, he stands in the middle of Citadel's central command room; he doesn't look at the displays anymore, just stares through the enormous panoramic window at the ensuing battle. It's like an impossibly huge fireworks show. Chain explosions, blood red lasers of the Reapers and sapphire blue stripes of Dreadnoughts canons continuously paint the eternal blackness of space. But this is no fireworks; this is the final struggle of a galaxy to survive, to do the impossible; to change fate!

As the battle rages on, the numbers come to life and through their mathematical precision, hope begins to blossom. The enemy is losing. Though the nightmarish Reapers continue to spawn through the solar system's Mass Relay, the galactic alliance beat them down to bits. From the imposing Turian dreadnoughts to the smallest pirate fighters, there is an unwritten bond, an invisible brotherhood that mixes and molds these warriors into an unstoppable force. But there is someone who is already looking past the current situation.

"This won't last much longer" says the Commander as he orders the Normandy to dock inside the Citadel. A heated debate begins in the Central command room when the situation is analyzed by the whole crew. The argument is quite simple, even terrifying when Shepard lays it down; "how much longer can we maintain the advantage?"

"Sure, we are winning now, but for how long?" He continues. "We have numeric advantage here and we are using the Mass Relay exit point like a bottle neck, killing everything that comes out of it. But with each passing moment we too are losing ships. Do you know what'll happen next?"

"We'll fry their sorry asses until there's no more left of them", replies James, confident as always.

"And do you really think this kind of strategy will work? Do you think the Protheans were so dumb they couldn't come up with the same strategy? And those before them, Like the guys who designed the Crucible? How is it that something as simple as outnumbering the enemy has never been an option before but it is now?"

"Luck maybe?" answers a slightly more confused and less optimistic James, scratching his head.

"No, it is not. It is not an option now either." A grim faced Liara replies. "Based on the Quarian observational data and EDI's calculations, what we've destroyed until now is less than 5% of the Reaper's total fleet. Plus there is no guarantee that there are no more of them. At this rate….."

Liara stops talking. Everyone has already guessed what's coming next. This is even worse, to be captivated by the illusion of victory and then catapulted back to the horrifying face of defeat. Shepard leans against the main console; his eyes aimlessly stare at the buttons and numbers.

"Well, maybe we should do it again. Let's blow it up" the silence is broken when Garrus comes up with a new plan. "Let's blow up the mass relay, just like the one we did in the Battarian space. They won't be able to attack the Earth anymore, right? "

"Yeah…that turned out real well!" Shepard replies, sporting a bitter smile, a sign of not so fond memories. "We'll end up killing thousands of people again. I'm not going to go through that again"

"It won't work anyway." Says Tali, who was silent and thinking all this time.

-why?

-because we are talking about the Reapers. You destroyed the Battarian system mass relay in hope of stopping or at least delaying their attack, no? Did it work? Destroying the mass relay here will only postpone the inevitable. They don't care if they must travel by FTL or even normal space travel speeds. They are flooding the galaxy through various other mass relays. Sooner or later they'll reach Earth too. There's no use blowing up just this one.

"Wait a second", Shepard excitedly shouts while he is intensely inspecting the main console. "EDI, come over here!"

-Yes commander.

-These are the main commands for the Crucible mass relay system, yes?

-Affirmative, commander.

-Then what the hell is this file?

After a few moments EDI answers the question in a confused manner which she rarely shows:

"I…I don't know. It's heavily encrypted; I could just barely make out the header. It says:

"Mass Warp System-secondary module-Zero Shift Protocol"

-Zero Shift Protocol, what is _that_?

-I have no idea commander. I can try to decrypt the rest of the file but my calculations show that even using the Normandy's internal computer's full capacity, it'll take months to decrypt the whole file…maybe even more.

-damn!

"May I intervene, Commander Shepard?" A ghostly voice fills the hollow dome of the central command room while a pale verdant spirit revolves back to life and appears before the crew of Normandy, adamant and spectral. It's the VI of Empress Aurora. The ghastly figure eloquently utters: "I can offer wisdom on the subject, if so you desire, commander".

-Aurora? You know what this file is for?

-Of course Commander. We designed it. But the question is something else; are you ready to hear the answer?

-What do you mean?

The imposing figure of the long lost alien empress takes a moment to come up with an answer, as if she's considering whether to tell Shepard the truth or not. After a long moment of contemplation, the green hologram talks:

"The mass warp system or as you would like to refer to it, the Crucible-Citadel mass relay, has also a secondary function. At first we continued on its original design, a free destination mass relay. It was how the "Ancient ones" intended it to be. Unfortunately for us, the Reaper's attack was far more devastating and sweeping that we had expected. Our plan was to use the mass warp and escape the galaxy, along with the other species of our time. However as you may have guessed, evacuating an entire galaxy is no easy task, not a quick one either. It would have taken months, even years, for everyone to gather at the escape site and use the system. Initially we thought we'd have enough time but as the Reapers unstoppable advance into the galaxy continued, we realized the escape plan was no longer viable. So we decided to change the device"

-change the Crucible? Into what?

-A shield!

-A shield!?

-Yes! We thought; if we cannot escape the Reapers, why not block their entry way to our galaxy? To shield us from harm!

-How the crucible is going to do that?

Again the empress went silent. It was obvious that she was hesitating. For some reason she didn't want us to know the secret. Even though she was only a Virtual Intelligence, a VI, she seemed afraid of the consequences.

"For the love of god, Aurora! Tell us! We don't have much time left" Shepard shouted as he was losing his patience.

-Do you really want to know it Commander? Can you bear this responsibility? Can you take hold of the destiny of all sapient life in galaxy?

"Y…yes. I can" the answer came with slightly less confidence, but after only a moment, the usual focus came back to Shepard's eyes: "Yes, I can! I must"

The holographic figure of Empress Aurora finally revealed the answer to the enigmatic riddle. With a deep, lifeless voice she spoke:

"The secondary module of the mass warp system is the Zero Shift protocol. It's a chain connection of Mass Relay devices galaxy-wise and relaying a heavy Element Zero isotope called "Eclipse-Eezo" stored in the Mass Warp system which will result the unrecoverable failure of all mass relay devices. To put it simply, with the Zero Shift system one can use the Crucible to destroy all and every mass relay in the Milky Way Galaxy, cutting all connection points with the Reapers home world."

The shock is almost breathable in the air. No one could imagine or even fathom what they've just heard and then Aurora finished her explanation with her usual regal way of speaking: "_That_ is the secondary module. Our final solution"

This was obviously beyond anyone's wildest guess. The entire civilization of the galaxy relied on the Mass Relays to thrive, to survive. Even the oldest and most technologically advanced space faring races had no other means but to use this system for fast and safe long range space travel. Without the mass relays space voyage as we know it would revert back to only a dream. Even with the FTL drives, it would still take years; decades even to travel from one solar system to the next, let alone from one side of the Milky Way to the other.

"Let's do it", after what seemed an eternity James finally broke the silence. "There's no other way, right? So let's do it while we still have some advantage"

The veteran soldier's words shook everybody out of their stunned situation. Tali was the first one to come up with a response:

"Are you mad? We are thousands of light years away from "Rannoch". After years of being space nomads we can finally go back to our planet. You can't just cut our way back"

"He's already home Tali, he can't understand", Garus continued the argument, in his own sarcastic way. "Humans generally don't give a shit about other races"

"Watch it _Turian_!" The last comment irritated the massive marine more than usual and readied his weapon to show he's not the kind of guy to shoot empty threats.

-You want a piece of me…_Human? _

_-_No, I just want to kick some _Turian_ ass!

As the debate heated up, others entered this incandescent discussion, but no matter what they said and which side they took, something was obvious; they were all scared. And when things seemed to get really out of hand, something stopped everyone dead in their tracks:

"Mass Warp System, secondary module, Zero Shift Protocol, activated. Countdown, T-minus 7 minutes to total purge"

Aurora has just said those words, words no one could believe. And when they finally got the courage to look toward the control console they could not believe what they saw either:

-Shepard!

He was standing there, his trusty assault rifle aimed against the arguing mass. There was no enmity in his eyes, neither any regrets, all that was, was determination.

-EDI. Disable this console, please!

-Yes commander.

Before anyone could react EDI swiftly ripped out a number of key panels and components from the back of the terminal. Its lights flickered and slowly faded away, along with the green spirit guide, the VI of the Empress Aurora, last ruler of the Protheans before their inevitable demise. In her last moment before returning to eternal silence, a subtle smile could be seen on her face. They made a bet with destiny, and won!

"EDI, no!" At last, Joker broke the silence.

-Our commander issued an order. As a member of the Normandy I had an obligation to comply.

Shepard's eyes were focused, deep and clean. There were no sign of hesitation in those eyes as he firmed his grip of the rifle.

-I'm sorry. There's no other way. This is our last chance to save the galaxy and by God I'm not going to miss it.

The battle outside was still raging on fiercely. Every second more and more Reaper ships came out of the mass relay and joined the battle. The galactic defense forces were fighting valiantly but as the time passed by, the situation looked ever more grim and desperate.

The courageous ground forces on earth that resisted the gigantic, death spewing ships and hoards of mindless husks, the fearless fighters in the skies circling and confusing the enemy with their hit and run tactics, never considering the enormous risks they constantly endure, and the veteran captains aloft their dreadnoughts and cruisers, ripping apart the heavens and their angels of death with their cerulean swords, they were all too busy to notice that the Normandy docked out of the Citadel. Neither their eyes caught a number of smaller ships that left the legendary vessel, each parting toward a different direction. No one knows for certain what happened inside the central control room of the Citadel on that fateful day, only that the legendary crew of the Normandy parted ways. Some remained loyal to Commander Shepard, while others chose to follow their own heart, their own creed. What everyone knows instead, is what happened moments after Normandy's departure:

The Crucible-Citadel combo construct began to slowly open up. The Crucible divided into numerous arm-like structures surrounding the Citadel in the center. While this initial configuration resembled a perfectly symmetrical flower, after a few moments each arm, or petal, started to move to a different orientation. Only in later analysis it was understood that each arm moved toward one of the Primary Mass Relays in the galaxy. Soon, a strange, dark blue glow began to manifest around the device. As the glow grew deeper and more sinister, observation devices on all ships began to scream a bold siren; something of unimaginable power is readying itself to activate. The numbers were not off the charts, they were simply incalculable, because no ship in the galaxy had the right instruments to measure such colossal energy. Something this powerful had never existed, never created, and it should never have, not by mortals.

The alarm and confusion among the commanders lasted only for a few seconds. A new reassuring message soon followed the quasi supernatural event. It was from Commander Shepard, ordering every ship to evacuate the vicinity of the glowing titan and to clear the straight line coming out from the various arms of the device.

The order was carried out immediately. No one doubted Shepard even for a second. After all, he's the hero who has already saved the galaxy many times. He knows what's going on, he always knows. He knew about the Reapers, even warned us, but we didn't listen. Now we've learned our lesson and put our total trust in him.

Almost all the galactic space fleet disengaged the battle at the same time and started scattering toward different positions. Strangely enough, the Reapers didn't follow, at least not immediately. They too must had felt the massive power surge in the device and after the sudden change of tactics in their enemy ranks, even they should had sensed something was coming. But, true to their relentless nature, after just a few seconds they started to follow their enemy to resume their never-ending assault.

But it was already too late.

The countdown had finished.

A blinding light of pure energy surged from the colossus. A flash of massive, deep violet beams ripped through the space like a divine sword. Almost immediately after the discharge, though millions of miles away, the mass relay of the solar system, the receiving end of one of the dark rays, began to glow a dark, intimidating spark. Soon every mass relay in the galaxy started to manifest the exact same phenomena. The galaxy was entangled, in a web of shadows. For just one moment everyone stopped to watch. Even though most people didn't know what was happening, such events of life changing proportions are always sensed by the heart, and this was no different.

The moment passed, and ruin followed. In an exquisitely synchronized manner, every mass relay in the galaxy, including the Citadel itself, exploded into a million pieces. Where there was once hope of new horizons, now rests dust, only dust.

We are alone, again.

Soon after the event, the galactic defense force routed and destroyed the remaining Reapers, which were left completely baffled and disorganized.

In the following weeks, a heated debate began between humans and their "guests", now forced to remain on Earth. The question was of course about the necessity of deploying the Zero shift module. Even among humans, some were strongly critic of Commander Shepard's actions. But it was far too late to do anything and so Shepard used this apparent victory and the gratitude of most of the human population to shrug off critics and began his rise to power. He who would sacrifice anything to safeguard humanity, the hero of the galaxy, was indeed the leader and commander the Earth needed now. And so, under the watchful eyes of its new supreme military commander and political leader, the planet began reconstructions. Most alien races, although cut off from their home worlds, angry and frustrated, agreed on the fact that what Shepard has done was indeed necessary. Thus they were given cities, states and settlements and were recognized as honorary Earth citizens.

The Quarians though, already accustomed to the life of space nomads, began their long Journey through the heart of the galaxy once more. They want to go home, no matter how much time it takes. The Vagrant fleet begins to move again, accompanied by some hopefuls of other races in search of alternate means to return home.

What is done is done. A decision was made, and consequences must now be paid. There is no grudge, no resentment and no regrets. Only hope resides in our hearts, hope for a better tomorrow.

Shepard watches from the top balcony of the newly rebuilt command center tower, as the Quarian flotilla leaves the Earth orbit. The stream of ships is almost reminiscent of the Milky Way. "This is not the end", he says to himself. "It's only the beginning!"

**4th Ending**

**Sufficient** "Effective Military Strength (EMS)", **Paragon** Commander Shepard

"We are not using it!"

After the revelation made by Aurora about the secondary function of the device, Commander Shepard breaks up the argument between his companions with this sentence.

-We can not use the Zero-Shift protocol. We can't just destroy our only means of transportation through the galaxy.

-But Commander we...

-I know James. Earth is here. We are home. But if we do that, we'll condemn every other race to a life of regret and homeless wander. Can we really do this to our companions? Can we betray all those who fought and made the sacrifice alongside us? I don't think so. I will not make that call, no matter what happens.

A deadly silence filled the chamber. Everyone in the room entered into their realm of inner consciousness, lost in thought, contemplating the outcome of such world shaping decisions.

After what seemed to be an eternity, it was Shepard who broke the silence, again, as he always does when the situation is grim beyond reckoning.

-There maybe another way.

"What have you in mind Shepard?" Garrus asked, ever trusting of his old friend, a trust earned true the countless desperate situations they had diffused together.

-we can use the device as intended but with a twist.

-A...twist?

-Yes Tali. EDI, can you pinpoint the point of origin of the Reaper army?

-Yes Commander. I think with the help of Aurora and the targeting system of the mass-warp system it is highly possible.

A few moments of confusion passed, still no one had the courage to ask the Commander what he was thinking.

At last EDI came up with and an answer:

"Apart from their fleet located at the central relay point of our galaxy, there's only one other location the Reapers are coming from. It's in the north quadrant of the Andromeda Galaxy, approximately 2.53 light years away.

"Excellent" The usual bright spark has returned to Shepards' eyes;

-Set course for that location!

The shock was palpable in the room. We are trying to escape from the Reapers, not to go visit them! Even EDI was visibly confused; Set course to where?

"Have you gone mad Shepard?" The massive krogan warrior finally asked the question everyone was thinking. "We can not go there; they'll crush us like insects!"

-Thing about it Grunt. The Reapers have attacked and destroyed our homes countless times. What if _we_ are on the offensive for once? They won't be expecting an attack on their home turf. All their attention is focused towards us; all their fleet is mobilized to attack this location.

"A surprise counter-attack" Garrus uttered these words as if waking from a deep sleep.

"Destroy the enemy base and you destroy their offensive capabilities" Liara too finally awakened from her initial stupor.

"I bet they've never had to defend their own home" Tali joined the conversation.

"Payback time!" Nothing could make James happier to get even with the hated squids.

- It'll be dangerous, a suicide mission if I know any better.

-Yes Garrus it'll probably be a one way trip. What say you my friend?

Like a volcano in full eruption Grunt burst into laughter; "A suicide mission into the heart of the enemy, with no chance of return? I love it, let's do it."

As the battle raged on across the solar system, an encrypted communication was sent to every ship of the alliance. The plan was simple, shockingly so, and that might've been just the desperate measure these desperate times needed.

The massive Crucible-Citadel Mass Relay System opened its gigantic arms and like a satellite dish pointed its center towards the Andromeda galaxy. The Normandy was leading a small convoy of cruisers and fighters accompanied by a handful of dreadnoughts. That was all the alliance could spare for this daredevil plan. After all they where still fighting a full on cosmic war with the unstoppable Reapers. In their minds, all the commanders knew this was a stupid and fruitless plan, but in their hearts...a glowing, indescribable warmth was beginning to stir...hope, if there ever was any, now opened its wings to follow Commander Shepard and his companions, once again.

The device came to life. A beam of light pierced the emptiness and plunged into the ocean of the unknown. The heroes followed.

"Long long journey through the darkness" An astute figure murmured these words as she was watching the history unfold before her lifeless holographic eyes. Left behind to guide the hand of fate, Aurora knew that moment; Destiny was in the making.

She smiled.

By: Behzad "Dono" M.M.

I hope you've enjoyed it. Thanks for reading. Peace^^


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